by E. M. Knight
I only wish it was as easy for me to trust him.
“They need a distraction,” Smithson tells me after Caroline, a vampire who I’ve always suspected had a thing for both my brothers, leaves the room. “Morale is low. Your vampires are frightened. They have to be soothed.”
“You think I don’t know that?” I snap. “But what can I do? It’s not safe for them to go outside. Not with the wards down. Here, at least, in the stronghold, they are contained. The threat, the danger, comes from the demon. Every guard is on high alert, ready to call in reinforcements at the first hint of its presence”
Smithson laughs. It’s not altogether a cruel laugh, but it’s not entirely comforting, either. “I saw what the demon did to those guards. I faced it myself. Trust me when I say that even the whole of The Haven’s vampires, arranged as an army, could not take it down.”
Smithson walks over to my desk. His injuries have mostly healed, thanks to an offer I made him from my brother’s secret store of blood. “Keeping them penned up is like putting a herd of sheep behind a rope barrier with a wolf on the prowl. The Narwhark cannot be fought, not directly, but that doesn’t mean you have to make it any easier for it.”
“And yet it’s not rabid,” I say softly.
Smithson jerks his head up. “What?”
“It’s not attacking at random,” I say. “It moves fast. It knows it can kill. But it’s intelligent. I glimpsed something in its eyes, last time it fed. It knows what it is doing. I think it’s developing... consciousness.”
“That’s garbage,” Smithson growls. “A demon isn’t capable of higher level thinking any more than a tea kettle is. The Narwhark only knows two things: kill, and feed.”
“Then why didn’t it kill you?” I question. “Why did it only stab the Queen with its tail? It had the entire assembly of vampires gathered in one room. It could have had its pick of any of them!”
“Eleira,” Smithson says softly.
I blink. “What?”
“Eleira was there. We know that she summoned it. We know that only a witch can take it down. Maybe that’s why it was cautious. Maybe Eleira’s presence made it pause.”
“You’re grasping at straws.”
“No! Listen to me, boy. I’ve seen more than you can imagine in my life. I’ve spent my whole life in the real world, fighting for survival just like any human! While you were coddled in here, protected by the wards—” he raises his hands as I start to object, “—and I mean no disrespect, Phillip, but objectively, I think it easy to say I have more life experience than you do. Simply from the situations I’ve been placed in.”
“What’s your point?” I question.
“My point is this. I can give you counsel. You would be wise to listen to it.”
“That’s what I’m doing, isn’t it?” I growl. “That’s why I’ve put up with you being by my side this whole time?”
“So then take action! You need to do something to divert the vampires’ attention.”
“Even if I agreed,” I say. “What could I do? They all know the gravity of the situation. Until Eleira and Raul get back--”
“If they get back,” Smithson interjects.
I walk right to him and stab a finger in his chest. “When they get back,” I say, “we’ll know more. We’ll be in a better position to act. Some of the uncertainties around all of this will be dispelled.”
“No. No, no, no.” Smithson shakes his head. “You don’t truly believe it will be that easy, do you?”
“I never said it would be easy,” I hiss. “Only that we will have a clearer picture.”
“And what do you propose we do while we wait? Sit on our thumbs, counting down the minutes to the next demon attack?” Smithson lowers his voice. “You might not fully grasp this, given your... personal history... but vampires are natural predators. They are not used to being frightened. They are even less used to feeling as if they are prey. The longer you wait, doing nothing, the more the discord will grow. You think members of the Royal Court aren’t meeting at this very moment, discussing what to do should the Queen not awaken?”
“Mother will wake up!” I roar, slamming a hand against the wall.
Smithson doesn’t even blink. Instead, he drops his voice an octave lower and asks, “And what if she doesn’t? If your precious Queen remains in her coma, what happens then? Tell me.”
I eye him without answering.
“You’ll be dealing with another revolt, that’s what. There are members of the Elite other than I who are eager to seek power.”
“Ah!” I say. “So you admit it. You wanted power and control over The Haven, after all.”
“No. All that I did, I did to serve the Queen.” He grunts. “Must we go over this old, hackneyed argument again? We’ve made our peace, it’s already happened, all of it is in the past. It cannot be changed.”
“Fine,” I relent. “Fine, fine. You speak of a distraction as if you have something in mind. So, tell me. What is it you propose?”
A ferocious smile spreads across his face. “The next full moon is coming,” he says. “Remind the vampires of who they are. Make them remember that they are not scared, timid creatures.”
“What are you saying?”
“Give them the humans,” he says. His eyes glimmer with raw lust. “Announce the next Hunt.”
Chapter Forty-One
RIYU
SOMEWHERE BENEATH THE CRYPTS
I pace the cold, tile floor of the secret underground chamber, not bothering to hide any of my discontent.
Beatrice summoned me here hours ago. It’s the first time I’ve been allowed in the lower levels. This is her domain, the place the King has given to her in full, to do with as she pleases...
To do with her victims as she pleases.
The chamber itself is simple. It’s not much more than a cut-out box. The walls are reinforced with steel rods that have been infused with iron. The entrance door is the only way in or out.
Well… the only way a regular vampire might see.
There are spells cast along the walls, hiding the secret doorways that lead deeper into Beatrice’s experimentation chambers.
How did she get them there? I wonder. I was not asked to do it for her. And there are no others with The Spark residing within The Crypts anymore.
Aside from that cunning, deceptive girl, Eleira, that is.
I knew she did something different when she opened the portal out of the Paths. It was not until I arrived on the other side that I discovered what.
Somehow, she managed to use the space between worlds to suck out the deadly magic lingering in Raul’s body, to sever his connection to the knife, and to restore him to his full capacity.
I have to admit the maneuver was brilliant. I couldn’t have foreseen it. I doubt any could have. She was supposed to be nothing but a hedge witch. I doubt she ever had much training. In fact, even if The Haven’s Queen had devoted every single moment to instructing her, Eleira could not have possibly had enough time to grasp any but the most basic tenants.
And yet, obviously, she knows more. Obviously, she is capable of more.
More, I think, than she or the Queen or even my Father dream possible.
I start running my fingers over each hand, feeling my nails, my knuckles, the narrow, feminine bones of my body. These are the hands that can do magic. These are the hands that are capable of so much.
Or, at least, would be capable of so much if the invisible shackles holding my power back would be released.
I glance anxiously at the one visible door. Beatrice is known to take her sweet time—but why summon me so far in advance only to make me wait? She and I have frequently collaborated together—maybe not as friends, but at least as allies—so the delay makes little sense. We have an understanding with each other. She knows one or two of my secrets. I know some of hers. It is what allows the thinnest semblance of respect to show, from her to me, when we are alone.
Otherwise, the vampire hierarchy wou
ld make such a thing impossible.
My fingers keep running over each other. Across, through, down, and then back up. Across, through, down and back up. It’s not exactly a nervous habit, but it is something I’ve found myself to take comfort in when my nerves start getting the better of me.
For one, I dislike being away from Dagan for so long. He doesn’t show it, not through the tough, thick exterior, but he needs my company. I know it. Especially at a time like this, right after the link between him and Raul has been broken. He’s probably reeling, trying to understand how it could have happened, dealing with the repercussions—and I’m not there to help him.
He’d never admit to needing my help. But I know he does. Oh yes, I know he does.
Finally, the door swings open. I still my hands and thrust them to my sides. Beatrice walks through.
Her cheeks are flushed, her lips swollen, and her hair has only been hastily arranged. A flash of anger takes me as I realize the reason she’s late.
Quick as I can, I smother it down.
Beatrice’s eyes flicker to me. “You’re still here,” she says. “Good.”
Not a single word of gratitude, not even the hint of an apology. I shouldn’t expect it from vampires so high above me in strength. But, still...
“What is it you wanted to show me?” I ask.
“I want to speak to you in private.”
“You could have done that anywhere,” I keep my voice deceptively meek. “You didn’t need to invite me here to do it.”
“No,” she tells me. “You’re right, I didn’t. Still. I wanted assurance that we would not be interrupted.”
I eye her and she walks closer. “And what would be so important as that?” I ask.
“The girl,” Beatrice says instantly. “Eleira. You saw her. You brought her here.”
I nod. “Yes.”
“You spoke to her.”
“I did.”
“I want to know...” Beatrice steps even closer. “If Eleira can be corrupted. You’re the one who taught me of the dark side of magic. Is she strong enough to ward it off? Or is she made vulnerable by who she is?”
I shake my head, “I cannot answer that. It is a judgment call of her character, not of her strength as a witch.”
“Then I want your opinion,” Beatrice tells me. “Can she be turned to our side?”
“It... might prove difficult,” I hedge. I recall the ardent way she avoided looking at Raul, the vampire she clearly loves, only to try to hide that love from us. “You can force a witch to do certain things. To act in particular ways. To be tugged, this way and that, by soft, invisible strings.” Again my mind drifts to the shackles holding my powers in place—the ones I am not supposed to even know of. “But you have to be very, very careful. Her Spark makes her vulnerable, in a way, but it also makes her resilient. As you might imagine.”
Beatrice taps her lips. “I see.”
“The best,” I say, speaking out of turn but needing to give voice to my thoughts, “would be to convince her to come to your side of her own accord. To show her that yours is the best way.”
“Mine,” Beatrice quotes. “Surely you mean ‘ours’, Riyu.”
I blink. That was a careless gaffe. “I did not want to presume,” I say quickly.
In truth, the only side I’m on is my own.
Beatrice laughs. “Presume away. It is only you and I here, no others.” She nods in the direction of the far wall. “Would you like to see what’s beyond there?”
I turn my head over my shoulder. I can see past the glamour spell covering it. I can see the enormous door hidden there.
But on the other side of it? I have no idea what might be.
“Yes,” I tell her curtly.
“Then come,” she beckons me to her side. “I will show you.”
We reach the wall. As Beatrice comes closer, the cloaking spell parts, revealing the giant door in full.
She gives no notice to my complete lack of surprise. She presses her palm against a metal plate in the middle of the wood. It dips down under the pressure, taking on the impression of her hand.
“Enchanted,” she tells me, matter-of-factly, as if I would not recognize the door for a torrial.
But now my curiosity is piqued.
We wait a few moments. Then, the grand door begins to grind open.
When there’s just enough space for us to slip through, Beatrice takes my hand and pulls me after her. I’m surprised by the unexpected contact. But I soon discover that it was necessary.
For the door does not just open to the other side. The door, in and of itself, is a portal... to a place miles and miles away.
The second I move over the threshold a magical chill washes over me. It’s like stepping through from the back of a waterfall and letting the water cleanse you as you emerge. For a moment, that strange sensation overcomes all of my senses. Then I blink, and we’re through, and it’s gone.
I look around. We’re in a pitch-black cavern. There’s no way in or out but the way we came.
It’s a hollowed out spot deep in the Earth. Immediately I dislike it. It feels wrong, somehow, to be in this place.
“Impressed yet?” Beatrice murmurs.
I turn to her—and stop short. Even though she’s just inches away, I cannot see her face. My vampire sight does not pierce this darkness.
An uncanny feeling of vulnerability comes over me.
She strolls forward, full of casual indifference. “You get used to it,” she says over her shoulder. “The first time I made the trip, I nearly bolted straight out.”
The implication in her words is clear. Nearly. Meaning she did not. Meaning that even if I want to, I cannot.
I take a step forward. As soon as my foot touches the ground the world seems to tilt. I have to spin my arms like a windmill to catch my balance.
“Oh,” she adds, entirely as an afterthought. “There is silver in the rock. I forgot how much it affects one like you.”
She left out a key operative word in that sentence, one as weak as you.
I grit my teeth and call upon all the military discipline Dagan has instilled in me before continuing on.
I can only track Beatrice by the sound of her footsteps. Every time her heels strike the ground the noise echoes through the space around me.
We walk for a longer distance than I thought possible. The acoustics of the rock give the impression of a close, tight space. But it seems to be indeed expansive.
On and on we go, where we stop, nobody knows.
Suddenly her steps cut out. I go still. There is a vibration to the air. It’s very subtle, and very, very hard to pinpoint exactly where it comes from.
But it does have a source. And that source is neither the silver in the rock nor the odd mix of latent magic I feel around me. It’s something altogether different.
I feel a swoosh of movement in the air as Beatrice raises her arms and claps her hands, twice, high over her head.
The walls light up with hundreds upon hundreds of stars.
My jaw drops. I clamp it shut so fast my teeth click against each other. But the effect of my surprise is not lessened.
It feels like I am standing in the middle of the cosmos, looking out upon the whole of the universe. It takes me an extra moment to realize that the stars are oh-so-slowly rotating around me.
“Beautiful,” Beatrice breathes. “Isn’t it?”
I only nod my head in wonder.
“Do you know the stars, Riyu?” she asks.
“No,” I admit. It is yet another part of my education that is lacking. “Father never saw fit for me to learn.”
Right away I grimace. No matter my relationship with the woman, she should never hear me refer to the King as Father.
Nobody should. Those are dangerous enough thoughts when they’re locked in my head.
She chooses to pay it no attention. “A pity. For you cannot truly appreciate the significance of this place without such learning.” She sighs. “But, w
e will make due with what we have. Do you see that star out there, far away, to your right?” She points. “The one glowing brighter than the rest?”
I nod. “Yes.”
“That is our sun. See how far we stand now? From here, we have a unique perspective on the constellations unavailable to any on Earth.”
“But we’re still on Earth,” I say. “Aren’t we?”
“Yes, of course. It is only our perspective that’s changed.” She motions to another group of stars. “I wish I could tell you about all of the constellations, but that would take an age. You only need to know a few select things about how the stars affect us.
“One: Eleira was not the only human girl prophesized to come into the vampire world and shake its very foundation. There was one other. Born at the opposite sign of the moon, and unknown to any but me. For I was the only one—“ she smiles, “—to have access to this place.”
“What does that mean for us, exactly?” I ask.
“That while Eleira is valuable...” Beatrice’s smile becomes sadistic, and cruel, “she is not altogether indispensable. Not in the way others think. But this is a secret that must remain between only you and me, hmm?”
I nod in tacit agreement.
“Two. And this is perhaps the most important. There will come a time when the King, your Father, must unite the covens. It is written here, in the constellations.” She gestures at some stars in the distance. “The time is not yet. But the signs are clear: all vampires must be bound under one rule in order for our kind’s true transcendence to take place.”
“Why tell me?” I ask. “I don’t have the power to influence things.”
“You, my dearest Riyu, are more capable than you think.” She winks. “And I promise you, I will work on Logan to help him see that.”
She walks closer and brings a hand to my cheek. “You deserve more than what you’ve been given. So much more. I can make that happen, if you let me. If you trust me...”
“I trust you enough,” I tell her.
She gives a soft laugh. “I see the way you look at Dagan. I might be the only one. If you want, I could help make that, happen, too...”